Thursday, April 18, 2013

Fool me once, shame on you...

I was feeding Ray. I had bought a single can of 'duck' along with the 11 other cans of 'chicken and turkey' just to make a case of 12. I had known when I had bought it that it was a long-shot. I've tried other kinds of food on Ray; beef, venison, 'turkey and chicken,' and he won't eat any of it. He likes his kibble chicken and he likes his canned food chicken and turkey; NOT turkey and chicken. No sir. Chicken and turkey.
So without much hope but with a plan in my back pocket, I did as I usually do. I put the quarter of a can of food on one side of the dish and the kibble on the other, and set the dish on the floor. Ray stood dish-side, unmoving. Without deigning to even lower his head to sniff the food, he looked at me. A very large and very tangible "REALLY?" hung in the air between us.
I put my plan into action.
"Mmmmm, mmmmm, that looks so good," I said to the food critic as I got down on my hands and knees, "I think I'll have a bite."
Then I did as every mother has ever done to her baby when food is scorned, I pretended to eat it. I stuck my head over the dish, stirred the kibble a bit with my fingers to make a noise to fool the blind hound into believing that I was enjoying his meal, and made eating noises.
I didn't have to pretend for long.
His interest piqued, Ray's head moved over the dish next to mine. I edged it out of the way with my own.
"You can't have any," I said to the dog, "This is so good, I'm going to eat it all."
Ray's head pushed back. This time, I let him have his way. Congratulating myself on my brilliant plan, I stood by and watched as Ray eagerly ate all of the food.
There was no "fool me twice." At the next meal, Ray wouldn't even approach his dish.

oh well, then, if YOU want to see it...no.The 15 minute policy is a good one.However, Ray goes through phases where he doesn't finishes his breakfast but will pick at it throughout the day. I hate the thought of wasting expensive dog food, so it stays on the kitchen floor until he eats it. That's why I separate the canned food from the kibble. He ALWAYS eats the canned. The kibble he can save for a snack later.

About Me

My name is Ray the Blind Dog. I'm a Redtick Coonhound that was born blind in July 2008. I'm named after my blind counterpart Ray Charles. I joined a family of 2 cats and 2 humans in June of 2009. I want to show everyone how well I get along in this world and let my friends know how I'm doing. Please feel free to add remarks or share your experiences in the comment box. We all want to know what you think.